Mayberry Strikes Out 12 in No-Hitter
Findlay, OH – After a weekend of cold weather and cancellations, the University of Findlay baseball team finally got back on the field to take on Saginaw Valley State University on Tuesday, April 12. The two teams split the games which, for the Oilers, was highlighted by a special pitching performance from senior Mason Mayberry. With the split, Findlay now sits with a record of 9-14 overall and a 2-6 mark in Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) play.
Game 1 (L 3-1) Box Score Video Replay
The bats never got going for Findlay in the first contest as they were held to just one hit in a 3-1 loss. That hit came in the fourth inning when, down two runs, sophomore Josh Schwerer laced a double into a stiff wind and over the left fielder's head. Schwerer went to third on a passed ball and scored on a groundout, giving Findlay their only run of the game.
For the Cardinals, two runs in the fourth and one in the seventh was just enough to secure the victory, their 12th of the season.
Junior Austin Rodesky, now 4-4 after starting the year 4-0, was the tough luck loser on the hill as he pitched a complete game and allowed three runs on six hits. He struck out eight and walked two. After his performance on Tuesday, Rodesky sits atop the GLIAC with 65 strikeouts this season and is third with an ERA of 2.54. He is just seven strikeouts away from the Findlay single-season record of 72 which was set in 1976 by Dave Warner.
Game 2 (W 7-0) Box Score Video Replay
The Oilers came alive in the nightcap as they scored seven runs, the most in a game since they scored 12 runs in a win over Cedarville back on March 16. But, despite having three players with two or more hits, the offensive numbers were overshadowed by an exemplary performance on the mound.
Senior Mason Mayberry, making his first start in 18 days, had every pitch at his disposal and carved up the Cardinals hitters to the tune of 12 strikeouts, which ties a career high, and no hits. With the victory, Mayberry's record on the season goes to 2-1. He is the second Oilers pitcher this season to throw a no-hitter, the first of which came on March 3 and was dealt by freshman Mark Delas. Before this season, it had been 19 years since Brandon Canterbury no-hit Urbana on April 26, 1997, the last Oilers no-hitter.
The great effort on the mound was backed by an equally great attack at the plate with the Oilers scoring single runs in the first and second innings to take a 2-0 lead.
In the fifth, sophomore Cameron Johnson singled to reach base and later scored on a double from Schwerer, his second double of the day. Then in the sixth, another extra base hit, a triple from freshman Brian Cappiello, would send two more runs across the dish, giving Findlay a 6-0 lead.
Another run in the eighth would make the final 7-0 as Mayberry got through the top of the ninth with no issue and sealed the victory and his place in Oilers baseball history.
Findlay gets no break as they hit the road to take on Hillsdale College tomorrow in a double-header slated to begin at 1:00 pm.